Wednesday, January 03, 2007

TAROT READING FOR NENA (A Poem)

Nena was a dear friend. I just heard of her death. It was not unexpected as she'd been ill for a while. At the time I wrote the poem below (14 years ago) she was 72 years young. We eventually had only occasional phone and mail contact, she living upstate and my arthritic knees no longer permitting me to make the bus trip to visit. But she was always in my heart and prayers. I post this poem in her memory and to offer a blessing for her further journey, but mostly to express my gratitude for her friendship.

The editor in my mind wants to say how this poem does not fully jell or "work." But my heart loves the closing image. It captures my experience of her and I want to share it with you.

I sent Nena a box of "The Twelve Teas of Christmas" for the holidays. I am told she never knew it, as she was hospitalized just before it arrived. It is going to be shared to accompany the pot luck dinner at her memorial gathering. Fare thee well, dear friend....

TAROT READING FOR NENA

I am swept more quickly than usualinto the magic space the Tarot opens upon.

Her Swiss accent, energy and bright cheeksenchant me, as any lingering concernabout the quality of readingI can offer is banished.

The treasures of her son's familyand husband's Native American heritage,her knowledge of astrology and herbs,her deep connection to the Spirit in nature, all open before me like surprise giftsas we travel with the Tarot as our guide.

And we voyage on, her humor, strengthand independence, and the youth that radiatesfrom this elfin Elder as she continuesto learn about life, all delight and enrich me.

At the end of our journey, she hugs me.

I feel blessed, deeply and gently,by the touch of fierce white wings.

(written June 1993; slightly revised January 2007)

* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,Roswila[aka: Patricia Kelly]****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

2 Comments:

I think Nena visited me in a dream just around the time of her death. I dreamed about another Nina (spelled differently) I know, who is always a problematic figure in my dreams. But in this dream a few days ago, she was friendly and visiting me in New York. :-)

About Me

Retired, I'm grateful to indulge in daily blogging, taking digital photos, writing poetry every day, and other creative efforts as the spirit grabs me. I also enjoy reading my poems and sometimes improvising on one of the musical instruments in my collection (e.g. didjeridu or kalimba), in our retirement community's regular Talent Shows. And I also occasionally play a role in one of
our radio plays, written by a resident,
and read on stage as if an actual radio show.

"Ganesh dances joyfully,
each step out of now into now again;
each footprint filling to overflowing with kindness.
Remover of Obstacles, clear me out of my own way;
teach me how to dance lightly through life,
how to spill over with love." -- prayer by Roswila

"The hardest challenge is to be yourself in a world where everyone is trying to make you be somebody else." -- e.e. cummings (poet & painter)

"There's a thin line between dreaming and waking... The line is not hard and fast. It's more like passing through a waterfall. Really it's just a two sided organic system; on the surface individual blades of grass, underneath it's an intertwined mass of roots we can barely comprehend." -- As explained on the T.V. series FALLING WATER

"You're only paranoid if you're wrong." -- quoted in a play by Steven Dietz

"Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth." -- Pema Chodron

"The past is not dead, it is not even past." -- William Faulkner

"Art is the only way to run away without leaving home." -- Twyla Tharp (dancer/choreographer)

"Wisdom begins in wonder." -- Socrates

"Before the light which all things give off dies in the heart it must be expressed." -- Basho (haiku Master)

“The only normal people are the ones you don't know very well.” -- Alfred Adler

"For every expert, there is an equal and opposite expert" -- attributed to Arthur C. Clarke (author)

"The first principle is that you must not fool yourself - and you are the easiest person to fool." -- Richard Feynman (physicist)